Is it time to start calling out bad cyclists?

Don't be silly! It's always someone else's fault.

Honestly.

Agency, responsibility: >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Well that's not what I was saying at all; there was a safe distance between us. The only thing that the other cyclist was saying to me was that he thought I hadn't looked, but he missed me doing just that - not that I pulled out too close in front of him.

I didn't 'pull a dick move' but was suggesting that communication is an important thing and that I could have done more to let him know I actually had seen him.

I reckon your 'safety margin' is shorter than his idea of a safety margin.

I reckon your 'safety margin' is shorter than his idea of a safety margin.

That's maybe true.

He just said the guy spat over his shoulder not necessarily at him.

On some of the rare occasions I've been prompted to shout while cycling I've found my general mouth-throat canal too swamped up with saliva from being so unfit, that the resultant effect is garbled speech and spittle spray. Maybe he had the same problem.

This falls on deaf ears I'm afraid. Whatever the intention it's not really ok to me. I've never needed to spit for my body to function and I'm riding the same bit of road, at the same speed and effort.

If had a medical reason that required spitting in the road – then I guess I'd do it whilst nobody was behind me.

I reckon your 'safety margin' is shorter than his idea of a safety margin.

Nail, head. It's not really a unilateral decision.

And I think what DJ is getting at in his own inimitable way is: What is the universal signal according to the highway code for "I'm just about to pull out on you cos I reckon it's safe even if you might not"?

same as driving, you just a preemptive thank you wave, as in, "I'm cutting you up now, but it's fine because I've raised my hand a little bit."

i think it makes it a little bit less of a dick move. i would prefer someone to come up to me and say 'im gonna punch you in the chest' and then do it, than just to be walking down the street and have some bre punch me in the chest.

I'd rather they didn't punch me in the tits in the first place, tbh. There's not really a polite way to do it per se

Getting T-boned by a "beautiful godzilla" in copenhagen, no fucking fun, no cities cycled worse than them!

sounds like something you paid for in the scarlet district!

Pedestrians need to know that flashing green man DOES NOT mean start crossing. It merely means continue crossing if you've started.

That is all.

Maybe they do but I'd honestly never begrudge a walker the right to have a bit of a walk on a flashing amber. They'll be there for hours if they wait and if I see flashing amber I'm still prepared for pedageddon. Strolling out while on the phone without so much as a thought from between cars however is right out of order.

I don't think this really is bad cycling, might just be etiquette I don't understand. I took my Holdsworth out for a spin round Regents Park earlier this afternoon, and at one point a properly kitted out cyclist on a nice flashy carbon machine started riding right on my bike wheel, uncomfortably so. There was no traffic either way, so he could have overtaken, but I think he was just trying to use my not insignificant body as a windbreak. While he was doing this though, he kept pedalling half a turn backwards, making what sounded like very deliberate intimidating freewheel ticking noises.

The way it came across was like when you're driving (sorry) and someone comes too close and then starts flashing their lights. Am I reading far too much into this, was he being an arse or is this some kind of gesture I'm not au fait enough to recognise?

Much more clear was the dickhead with an afro and a Brompton on Thornhill Road the other day, giving shit to anyone overtaking him in a really sarcastic way. The kind of bellend who overtakes you at every red light and then gives you mock congratulations when you easily catch up with him again afterwards. WAC.

Unsolicited riding on your wheel is a fact of life if you come across inexperienced people (never mind all the kit) and it's just something I shrug off. There are all sorts of ways of dealing with it, such as slowing down markedly, or doing the opposite if you're fast enough and dropping the person, or having a word if you can be bothered. It can be annoying but unless you're likely to brake suddenly there's no harm done.

Much more clear was the dickhead with an afro and a Brompton on Thornhill Road the other day, giving shit to anyone overtaking him in a really sarcastic way. The kind of bellend who overtakes you at every red light and then gives you mock congratulations when you easily catch up with him again afterwards. WAC.

I've met one person like this, once. I wasn't even going very fast, he was just so slow. He only overtook me again because he jumped every red light. I think (but can't remember) that he got himself into trouble at some junction by doing that.

was he being an arse

Yes. The good news is that if contact is made, he will come off and you probably won't. Not that you'd deliberately switch somebody into the oncoming traffic...

Unsolicited riding on your wheel is a fact of life if you come across inexperienced people (never mind all the kit) and it's just something I shrug off. There are all sorts of ways of dealing with it, such as slowing down markedly, or doing the opposite if you're fast enough and dropping the person, or having a word if you can be bothered. It can be annoying but unless you're likely to brake suddenly there's no harm done.

Interesting, because I'm still relatively new to the whole riding a road bike around the park thing, I always assume that anyone else there is actually more experienced than me. I did find it annoying, but I didn't know if it was something you're just expected, or even obliged to put up with. Next time I'll be assertive with the fucker.

I've met one person like this, once. I wasn't even going very fast, he was just so slow. He only overtook me again because he jumped every red light. I think (but can't remember) that he got himself into trouble at some junction by doing that.

The guy I was talking about was actually going pretty fast, I've never seen those tiny Brompton wheels spinning so quickly. I think it must be some sort of inferiority thing.

Unsolicited riding on your wheel is a fact of life if you come across inexperienced people (never mind all the kit) and it's just something I shrug off. There are all sorts of ways of dealing with it, such as slowing down markedly, or doing the opposite if you're fast enough and dropping the person, or having a word if you can be bothered. It can be annoying but unless you're likely to brake suddenly there's no harm done.

I don't mind someone on my wheel if they do their turn in front every so often. I got pissed off the other night when some bellend was literally inches from my rear wheel all the way down Queensbridge road. I wasn't going fast but it sounded like he was struggling to stay within kissing distance of me.

I started to get really annoyed when I came to an area with a lot of parked cars down the left and have been nearly hit by swinging doors in the past. I took a wide line around it after checking where he was only to hear a "What the fuck?!" pant behind me. He couldn't muster a more coherent sentence at this point. A little further down the road I knew there was a junction which is usually a red light by the time I get there, so I put the hammer down to get some distance from him because I like to skid stop there.

Got to the lights slammed into a rad skid and heard an ear achingly loud screach and more cursing. Apparently he wanted to ride straight through the red. I pointed to the traffic crossing his path if he did that before he wobbled towards the junction before having his front wheel brushed by a bus. He didn't fall off, his wheel didn't look too bad and he was still angry. So I rode past and told him to have a lovely evening.

#WAC
#CSB
#TL;DR

The way it came across was like when you're driving (sorry) and someone comes too close and then starts flashing their lights. Am I reading far too much into this, was he being an arse or is this some kind of gesture I'm not au fait enough to recognise?

Sometimes they're flashing you to tell you something, for example if there's an axe murderer on your roof.

Sometimes they're flashing you to tell you something, for example if there's an axe murderer on your roof.

It's none of their fucking business how I give my mother-in-law a lift.

I find that a snot rocket or two discourages persistent wheel suckers.

Unsolicited riding on your wheel is a fact of life if you come across inexperienced people (never mind all the kit) and it's just something I shrug off. There are all sorts of ways of dealing with it, such as slowing down markedly, or doing the opposite if you're fast enough and dropping the person, or having a word if you can be bothered. It can be annoying but unless you're likely to brake suddenly there's no harm done.

that^ very satisfying. But I know what OP means. You can normally tell if the wheel sucker has ever ridden with a club or not, ones who have generally know the score and aren't shit.

The ones I dislike are the ones who sit on and sit just to the right of you (almost) overlapping your wheel. They have no clue and should be dropped at the earliest possible opportunity.

Anyone ever find out what rev. Matthew's surname was? Just that there is a matthew in the metro's letter page this morning asking for more police to fine rlj's and that the number he sees is ' laughable'. My gut instinct immediately kicked in!

I'm all for Cyclists to have number plates and insurance, just as long as all pedestrians do too.

I'm all for Cyclists to have number plates and insurance, just as long as all pedestrians do too.

Surely we should make sure all motorists have insurance too and tax and an valid MOT. A full driving license (with less than 12 points) would be nice too. They need to take all the illegal drivers off the road before we have to pay for compulsory insurance and number plates.

I'm only getting a number plate if I can also have wide load and casual toxic emmissions plates too.